Gusau, Sanusi, NFF Executive Committee resign one month to election

Gusau, Sanusi, NFF Executive Committee resign one month to election

The President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), Ibrahim Musa Gusau, has resigned from office alongside members of the federation’s Executive Committee and its General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi.

The NFF announced the dramatic development on Thursday through its official social media handle, confirming what is believed to be the first time in the history of Nigerian football that an entire NFF board has resigned en masse.

In a brief statement, the federation said: “NFF President Ibrahim Musa Gusau, alongside his Executive Committee and the General Secretary, Dr Mohammed Sanusi, have resigned from their positions.”

The unprecedented development comes exactly one month to the scheduled NFF election, adding another dramatic twist to the leadership crisis confronting Nigerian football.

The timing of the mass resignation is expected to generate intense interest among football stakeholders, with the federation now facing the immediate task of determining how the affairs of the NFF will be managed in the period leading to the election.

The NFF Congress is scheduled to meet to deliberate on the development and decide the next phase for the administration of Nigerian football. The Congress is expected to consider the implications of the mass resignation and determine the appropriate mechanism for ensuring continuity and stability within the federation ahead of the election.

The development is particularly significant because it marks an unprecedented moment in Nigerian football administration. It is the first time in the history of the NFF that an entire Executive Committee has resigned from office at the same time.

Gusau became NFF President in September 2022 after emerging victorious at the federation’s elective congress in Benin City, Edo State. His administration has overseen the country’s national teams, domestic competitions and various football development programmes.

Sanusi, who had served as NFF General Secretary since 2014, was also a key figure in the day-to-day administration of Nigerian football and the coordination of the federation’s international engagements.

With the President, Executive Committee and General Secretary all stepping down just one month before the election, attention will now shift to the NFF Congress and its forthcoming deliberations.

The Congress meeting could prove decisive in determining the immediate leadership structure of the federation and setting the roadmap for the next phase of Nigerian football.

. Credit: Samuel Ahmadu